Bellefonte students participate in annual Math 24 tournament

Just because students from Bellefonte Area School District don’t participate in the annual 24 Challenge until the spring, doesn’t mean it doesn’t take most of the school year to prepare.

Students competed at the district math tournament held at Bellefonte Area Middle School. They were eligible to compete at the district level based on results from building tournaments held at each of the district elementary and middle schools. The 24 Challenge is based on the 24 Game that challenges students to create the number 24 by using a series of given numbers.

Elementary math coach Stephanie Culley said each school annually handles practices differently, but they all start in the fall. Students at Marion-Walker Elementary School generally practiced in the morning before school started; students from Bellefonte Elementary School practiced four days in a weekly cycle during lunch. They, like those at Marion-Walker, practiced with the guidance of Pat Zimmerman. There were 30 students from Pleasant Gap Elementary School who participated in two groups of 15. They practiced every other week during lunch, under direction of a parent volunteer. And those at Benner Elementary School also prepared with fourth- and fifth-grade advisers during free time during the school day.

Winners of the 2019 district tournament

Fourth grade
First place: Brent Ohmit
Second place: Kayla Leddy
Third place: Althea Helms

Fifth grade
First place: Grant Adams
Second place: Taylor Gutierrez
Third place: Landon Bassett

Sixth grade
First place: Christian Reigh
Second place: Paige Thomas
Third place: Alexis Fravel

Seventh grade
First place: Braden Bickle
Second place: Braedyn Kormanic
Third place: Ethan Tomasacci

During the 2017-18 school year, math training that also started in the fall paid off for several students who placed in the finals and semifinals of the regional 24 Challenge held at Lock Haven University-Clearfield campus. Each building with student participants held its own building-level tournament. The top eight students from fourth- through sixth-grades qualified for a district tournament at the middle school. From there 35 students then qualified for the regional tournament.